The present commercial cooking time for chickens at an original temperature of 32.degree. F. is approximately 16 minutes. By pre-warming chickens to room temperature 72.degree. F, the cooking time can be shortened by at least 5 minutes. This permits the backlog of cooked chicken to be built up sooner than before. Also the shorter cooking time is convenient when demand exceeds the supply of cooked chickens. The customer is kept waiting as short a time as possible.
Another advantage of reduced cooking time is that parking lot spaces are occupied a shorter time. Many of the fast food stores have limited parking spaces, therefore, the sooner the customer is served, the sooner his parking space is available. Many potential customers may drive on if no parking space is available.
Many store managers have been known to allow the chicken to warm up to room temperature by bringing the boxed, uncooked chickens out of the cooler and allowing them to remain at room temperature for several hours. This not only is inconvenient from the standpoint of many boxes sitting in the kitchen, but can be harmful to the chickens. As soon as the temperature of chicken gets above 35.degree. F., enzyme action occurs and the bacteria growth increases rapidly. This affects the flavor and could result in spoilage. Also the natural juices have a tendency to drain off when the uncooked product sets for long periods. Some store managers place the chickens in the sink and run hot water over them to increase the temperature prior to cooking. This method not only prevents the sink from being used for its intended purposes, but also could cause problems with the Board of Health. In addition, the skin of the chicken becomes tough when it is exposed to hot water temperatures (approximately 160.degree. F). Further, this method is not exact and requires at least some significant time by an employee to watch over the product.
Fast food services such as chickens or the like require efficient as possible preparation time to be successful.